Monday, December 24, 2018

Lime Jell-O Christmas Trees

Jell-O Christmas Trees are easy to make, fun to eat, and super pretty! I just like all things Jello! This is two simple layers of Jell-O, one mixed with a can of evaporated milk, and cut into triangles. If you want, you can add some sprinkles right before serving.

I've had this recipe in my "To Make" files for years...so happy to finally make it! I can image doing this for many holidays - pinkish and reds for Valentines Day, Blue and Blue for a Dodgers game, pastel colors for Easter, and more!

Thanks for Susan for helping me figure out how to cut these into 7 equal trees per row, with leftover scraps. Thanks to my friend JustJenn who came up with a plan that doesn't have leftover pieces. (Yes, I sent a group text as I was making this because my brain was dead and I couldn't figure it out... Yay friends!) Susan even broke out the ruler.

If you add sprinkles, do that right before you serve them...the sprinkles can run. And I tried random red and green sprinkles and it was ugly (see photo of the color running after sitting out for less than 30 minutes). I prefer the Jell-O without sprinkles because the sprinkles add a lot of crunch and I like a smooth Jello.

Merry Christmas! ~ mary

Jell-O Christmas Trees

Original Recipe from Jell-O: https://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipe/138513/christmas-tree-jigglers

Ingredients:

- Boiling water (total of 2 cups, divided)

- 1 can (5 oz.) evaporated milk (Yo, it's not Sweetened Condensed milk like I use in lots of my Jell-O recipes. Be sure to get Evaporated Milk) (If possible, have it refrigerated before making the Jell-O)

- 2 large packages of 6 ounces each, or 4 small packages of 3 ounces each - Jell-O, Lime flavor (You need a total of 12 ounces of Lime Jello)

After the Plain Jell-O Layer has been in the refrigerator for 15 - 20 minutes, start on the Milky Jell-O Layer.

Pour 6 ounces of Lime Jell-O (1 big package or 2 small packages) into a medium bowl. Add 2/3 cup boiling water into the bowl, and stir until completely dissolved (2-3 minutes).

Stir in evaporated milk (shake well before opening can).

Refrigerate mixture until slightly thickened (about 15 minutes). Pour over the plain Jell-O layer and return to the refrigerator

Let set at least 4 hour or overnight.

Cutting:

Unmold the Jell-O onto a cutting board. If the whole thing doesn't come out easily, you can cut into 4 equal rows. Then carefully pull out each row onto the cutting board. (See my photos above)

Cut each row into 7 alternating equilateral triangles (you'll have 2 scrap pieces at the end). See photos and my friend Susan's drawing - thanks Susan! (Yes, that's the same Susan from Swedish Bread fame - always helping me out!). I made a cut line template on parchment paper and placed that under the Jell-O.

Optional:

Dip one side of the Jell-O piece in sprinkles.

Important note: Press into sprinkles right before serving...they will eventually start to bleed.

Only use sprinkles that are coated.

I prefer it without sprinkles because the sprinkles add a lot of crunch and I like a smooth Jell-O.

Amazon links (affiliate links - if you buy stuff, I get a few cents without any cost to you):

Sunday, December 16, 2018

Kanellängd ~ Swedish Bread with Cinnamon and Pearl Sugar

Kanellängd or Swedish Bread topped with Swedish Pearl Sugar is one of my favorite treats of the holiday season. My friend Susan makes loaves of this delicious bread, and I always try to remain a permanent friend so I'm on the bread list. Ha ha. We've always wanted to get together to bake this super pretty bread, and 2018 was finally the year!

This recipe is really special - Susan's mother-in-law brought her recipe from Sweden when she immigrated to America. Susan's husband Rick remembers making bread every holiday season - this was before the ubiquitous Kitchen Aid mixer with dough hook so he remembers lots of mixing and kneading. I found recipes online and some have cinnamon and cardamom. But Rick's mom didn't like cardamom so that got nixed. I always love seeing how a traditional recipe is adapted by each family or generation.

Aren't they sooooo pretty!?!? And they are just as delicious!!

The recipe calls for a mix of Swedish and US measurements - isn't that a true immigrant recipe? Rick's mom had her own deciliter measuring cup (100 milliliters = 1 deciliter) that Susan & Rick continue to use to this day. Do you have inherited cooking tools that you treasure?

This dough is a sweet dough made with all-purpose flour, whole milk, butter, sugar, eggs, yeast, and a little salt.

Dough! Kneading a bit before setting it aside to rise!

After an hour, the dough was punched down, kneaded, and divided into 8 equal pieces (using a scale is very handy). Then each piece is rolled out into a rectangle. Brush liberally with softened butter.

Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon.

Roll the long end as tight as you can.

Pinch seal as best you can. Place seam side down on the baking sheet.

Okay. Here's the fun part. Using kitchen shears, cut sections of the log. Cut as close to the bottom of the log as possible. Fold over the just cut section in the following pattern: Center, Right, Left or Center, Left, Right - just be consistent. It's a good idea to pinch the top of each leaf so it keeps a nice pointy top.

Here's another view of the log. Center, Right, Left, Center, Right, Left...until you are done. You will need to nudge the uncut log up on the tray as you proceed to make sure you don't severe the bottom as the log stretches (this will make more sense when you are doing it).

By the way, when you get to the end, cut off any extra dough. Plop all those edges onto some part of the tray. Be sure to egg wash and Swedish pearl sugar those scraps and bake them off. Then you get to eat those scraps when they come out of the oven and save the loaf for your friends.

Cover the shaped loaves with a kitchen cloth and let rest for another hour to rise.

After the second rise, preheat oven to 350 degrees F and get them ready to bake!

Brush each loaf with an egg wash. Be sure to get all the nooks and crannies. (Oh, in the upper left corner you can see the scrape pile of deliciousness). We fit three loaves on a half-sheet tray.

Top each loaf with a generous amount of pearl sugar. (Try not to eat all the pearl sugar out of the bag like I tried to do...it's so tasty and fun). Bake for 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees (length depends on the size of your loaf). Our 8 loaves baked for 19 minutes.

Topping:
Egg
Swedish pearl sugar (I purchased it at Surfas. Can be found on Amazon (affiliate link) or King Arthur)

Equipment needed:
Kitchen shears
Parchment paper
Baking sheets

Instructions:

Make the Bread Dough:
Heat milk, butter, sugar over low heat until butter is melted.

In a small bowl, lightly beat the egg. Temper the egg with a little of the milk mixture, then pour it into the milk mixture and mix well. Add salt. Set aside to cool a bit.

In another small bowl, combine yeast and 1 T of sugar. When the milk mixture is lukewarm, add 1/4 cup to bowl and whisk together. Set aside for yeast to start bubbling.

When the yeast is ready, start making the dough. In a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment, add 10 dl (about half the flour). Add the remaining milk mixture. Add the yeast mixture. Mix dough until combined and then add remaining flour, 1 dl at a time, until dough pulls away from the sides of bowl. Remove from bowl onto floured surface. Knead a few minutes then set aside in a bowl. Cover with clean kitchen towel and set in a warm area to rise for 1 hour.

After dough rises for an hour, punch down dough and knead about 50 times on a floured surface.

Divide dough to make loaves (we made 8 loaves so we used the scale to equally divide the dough.)

Shaping & Baking:
With a rolling pin, roll out dough into a rectangle on a floured surface. Spread softened button on the entire surface of the dough (we used about 1 T per loaf). Sprinkle sugar to cover the butter, then sprinkle cinnamon.

Roll the LONG side tightly and seal the edges by pinching the dough together. Place seam side down on a parchment lined baking sheet.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. (Of course, it depends on how many loaves you make. When we made 8 loaves, they baked for 19 minutes.)

After 5 minutes, move loaves onto racks to cool. These are delicious warm from the oven. Can be kept at room temperature until you gift them to friends and family during the holiday season (or keep them for yourself to eat!) They are lovely warmed in the toaster over too. Enjoy!

I made this!
Thanks Susan and Rick for years of friendship and for sharing this wonderful tradition with me!

Merry Christmas! ~ Mary the Food Librarian

Notes:Savor The Flavour has a recipe that includes cardamom and a orange glaze. They have the segments go right or left (we have right, left, and center) and they make one big log.

BBC Food has a video (with really interesting music) and they make two cuts (left and right) and one big log.

Friday, December 7, 2018

Do you have one hour? Then you have time to make these cookies! Really, they are super easy and fast. I can wake up super duper early and make them before work (and I leave home at 6 am). Sometimes, I don't have time to let them cool so I just lug the half-sheet pan into work. My co-workers don't mind. And I'm sure your friends won't mind too.

This recipe is from The Boy Who Bakes. I love Edd Kimber, cookbook author and winner of the BBC2's Great British Bake Off. He has engaging videos and fun content on Instagram. Earlier this year, he brought us heaven...in the form of a brownie cookie.

Baking these cookies is so much easier than baking brownies - you don't have to wait until the brownies are cool, cut them into squares, and place into cupcake liners. This is a brownie. In the shape of a drop cookie. Oh, did I mention there is sea salt? Yes there is.

I'm excited to come back to blogging with this recipe. I've been making these cookies All. The. Time. I would think colleagues would get sick of them...but apparently they have no trouble finishing them off. Let's go. - mary

The Boy Who Bakes emphasizes this and I concur. You need GOOD ingredients for this to work. It has two types of chocolate: Dark chocolate and Dutch Cocoa. I use the Trader Joe's Belgium Dark Chocolate and Valhrona Dutch Cocoa (purchased at the new Surfas location in Los Angeles - so excited they are back!!)

The other thing that's key in this recipe is timing. You should mise en place your ingredients, preheat your oven, and have two parchment lined trays at the ready.

(The photos are from two different baking sessions in case they look slightly different.)

A few colleagues have said these are their favorite cookies and I should bring them to every meeting.

Process photos: Melt chopped chocolate and butter over double boiler.

When the chocolate is melted, start the stand mixer containing the sugars and eggs. Beat for exactly 5 minutes.

As the Boy Who Bakes stressed, timing is important. Be sure to have a preheated oven at 350 F ready to go, parchment lined sheet trays (I use 2 half-sheets), as well as all your ingredients scaled and ready.

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2a. Sift together dry ingredients (flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt). Set aside.
2b. Using a double boiler, melt butter and chocolate, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat when melted.
3. As soon as the chocolate is melted, beat together the sugars (granulated and brown sugar) and eggs in a stand mixer with whisk attachment for 5 minutes (set a timer...you want 5 minutes).
4. Scrape down sides of mixture and add the melted chocolate & butter mixture. Beat for 30 seconds to 1 minute until combined.
5. Add the sifted dry ingredients all at once and mix just until combined. I usually stop early and finish folding with a spatula until blended. But hurry...you gotta get this into the oven.
6. Scoop with disher (cookie or ice cream scoop) so they are uniform in size. (Note: Boy Who Bakes makes them really big. He fits 6 on a tray and I get at least 12.) They do spread so don't crowd them on the tray.
7. Sprinkle some flaked sea salt on top of each cookie. (When I started I didn't put enough salt on each cookie, so don't be afraid).
8. Place in center of oven and bake for 12 minutes. They will develop a crinkled top and puff a bit. I bake with the tray in the center rack and only bake one tray at a time.
9. Remove from oven and let rest on the tray until they are cool. Because they are soft, don't move onto a cooling rack until they are cool.
10. Enjoy!

Oh, what's happened since I last blogged? Lots and also not much. My beloved father's health declined due to Parkinson's and arthritis, then he had a stroke, and in September 2017, he left all that pain and discomfort and went to a place where he could garden, eat cake, and watch baseball.

I've been pretty active on Instagram showing lunch with mom, Cidney the Girl Dog, and stuff I've been eating.

I want to get back to blogging because I need to keep track of recipes, and remember what I made and shared.

So, hello. Hi there. It's good to be back.

Oh, yeah. It's my birthday today. I'm a big believer in self-gifting birthday stuff so I bought a new cake turntable and want to improve my frosting technique. And I received lots of deliciouscookbooks I can't wait to try. That's why I started this little blog years and year ago. To document learning to bake. So here I am again.